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Airbus A320 Family
The Airbus A320 family of short- to medium-range commercial passenger airliners are manufactured by Airbus and are the only narrowbody in their product line. Family members include the A318, A319, A320, and A321, as well as the ACJ business jet. First delivered in 1988, the A320 pioneered the use of digital fly-by-wire flight control systems in a commercial aircraft. With more than 4,000 aircraft of the A320 family built, it is the second best-selling jet airliner family of all time after its primary competition, the Boeing 737. 'Development' Background After the initial success of the A300, Airbus began developing a new model aimed at replacing the world's most popular aircraft at the time, the Boeing 727. The new Airbus would be of the same size, yet offer improved operating economics and various passenger capacities. The digital technology in the A320 would herald a two-generation technological leap over the all-analogue Boeing 727 and be a generation ahead of the Boeing 737-300/-400/-500 series. The A320 was targeted at the global fleet replacement requirements for the 727 and early variants of the 73. After the oil price rises of the 1970s, Airbus needed to minimise the trip fuel costs of the A320. To that end, Airbus incorporated advanced features including fly-by-wire flight control, composite primary structures, centre-of-gravity control using fuel, glass cockpit (EFIS) and a two-person flight deck. The end result was that the A320 consumes 50% less fuel than the 727. According to a study cited by the Stockholm Environmental Institute, the A320 burns 11,608 kilograms of jet fuel flying between Los Angeles and New York City, which is about 77.4 kilograms per passenger in an A320 with 150 seats. Bernard Ziegler was the initiator of the aircraft's then revolutionary fly-by-wire flight controls with sidestick cockpit controller and full glass cockpit. He successfully convinced aviation authorities of the concept's validity. Production Airbus requires about eight months to build an A320 jetliner. Components from various Airbus plants are transported to the final assembly plant at Hamburg Finkenwerder for the A318/A319/A320/A3215 and to Toulouse Blagnac for the A320. Nearly all assemblies are moved using Airbus' A300-600ST 'Beluga' outsized transporters. The Airbus A320s sold to China to be delivered between 2009 and 2012 will be assembled in the People's Republic of China in Tianjin.67 Airbus intends to relocate Toulouse A320 final assembly activity to Hamburg as part of its Power8 organization plan begun under ex-CEO Christian Streiff. The A320 family production rate in 2008 was slightly more than 32 aircraft per month. Current EADS ceo Louis Gallois stated in May 2007 that Airbus would be producing 40 narrowbodies per month by the end of 2009, including proposed Tianjin, China-assembled aircraft. However, 2008 marked the high point to date in Airbus narrowbody manufacture (32 aircraft/month), a rate which the EADS division hopes to maintain in 2009 and which is higher than what Airbus forecast less than two years earlier. 'Design' The Airbus A320 family are low-wing cantilever monoplanes with a conventional tail unit with a single fin and rudder. They have a retractable tricycle landing gear and are powered by two wing mounted turbofan engines. Compared to other airliners of the same class, the A320 features a wider single-aisle cabin of 155.5 inches (3.95 m) outside diameter, compared to 148 inches (3.8 m) in the Boeing 737 and 131.6 inches (3.34 m) in the Boeing 717, and larger overhead bins, along with fly-by-wire technology. In addition, the aircraft has a spacious cargo hold equipped with large doors to assist in expedient loading and unloading of goods. The A320 features an ECAM (Electronic Centralised Aircraft Monitor) which gives the flight crew information about all the systems of the aircraft. With the exception of the very earliest A320s, most can be upgraded to the latest avionics standards, keeping the aircraft advanced even after two decades in service. The flight deck is equipped with EFIS with side stick controllers. At the time of the aircraft's introduction, the behavior of the fly-by-wire system (equipped with full flight envelope protection) was a new experience for many pilots. Three suppliers provide turbofan engines for the A320 series: CFM International with their CFM56, International Aero Engines, offering the V2500 and Pratt & Whitney whose PW6000 engines are only available for the A318 variant. Technology Technology used in the A320 includes: * The first fully digital fly-by-wire flight control system in a civil airliner, see A320 flight control. * Fully glass cockpit rather than the hybrid versions found in aircraft such as the A310, Boeing 757 and Boeing 767. * The first narrow body airliner with a significant amount of the structure made from composites. * The ECAM (Electronic Centralized Aircraft Monitoring) concept, which is included in all Airbus aircraft produced after the A320. This system constantly displays information concerning the aircraft's engines, as well as other key systems such as flight controls, pneumatics and hydraulics, to the pilots on the two LCD displays in the centre of the flightdeck. ECAM also provides automatic warning of system failures and displays an electronic checklist to assist in handling the failure. * Airbus recentlywhen? started installing LCD (liquid crystal display) units in the flight deck of its new A318, A319, A320, and A321 flight decks instead of the original CRT (cathode ray tube) displays. These include the main displays and the backup artificial horizon, which was an analogue display prior to this. LCDs weigh less and produce less heat than CRT displays; this change saves around 50 kilograms on the plane's total weight. * Even though the A320 family is technologically advanced, some of the computers at the heart of the fly-by-wire system are built around CPUs9 like the Intel 80186 and Motorola 68010. While these chips may not offer anywhere near the performance of modern processors, especially on Personal Computers or servers, they are generally stable and reliable. Winglets In 2006, Airbus tested three styles of winglet, intended to counteract the wing’s induced drag and wingtip vortices more effectively than the previous wingtip fence. Adoption of the new winglets was expected to reduce fuel consumption by one to two percent.needed The first design type to be tested was developed by Airbus and was based on work done by the AWIATOR program. The second type of winglet used a more blended design and was created by Winglet Technology LLC, a company based in Wichita, Kansas as well as the third type. Despite the anticipated efficiency gains and development work, Airbus announced that the new winglets will not be offered to customers, claiming that the weight of the modifications required would negate any aerodynamic benefits.12 In addition, the change in forces from winglets add additional stress to the wing which would require long-term study to determine if structural integrity is compromised.needed On 17 December 2008, Airbus announced it was to begin flight testing a new Blended Winglet design developed by Aviation Partners as part of an A320 modernization program. The aircraft used for the test program is MSN001 (F-WWBA) the original A320 prototype airframe, powered by the CFM56 engine. 'Variants' The A320 has given rise to a family of aircraft which share a common design but are slightly smaller (the A319), significantly smaller (the A318), or slightly larger (the A321). Passenger capacity ranges from 100 to 220. They compete with the Boeing 737, 757-200, and 717. All have the same pilot type-rating. Today all variants are available as corporate-jet. Airbus A320 The A320 series has two variants, the A320-100 and A320-200. Only 21 A320-100s were ever produced; these aircraft, the first to be manufactured, were delivered only to Air Inter (an airline later acquired by Air France) and British Airways (as a result of an order from British Caledonian Airways made prior to its acquisition by British Airways). The A320-200 features wingtip fences and increased fuel capacity over the A320-100 for increased range; other than that differences are minimal. The last 5 A320-100 aircraft, operated by British Airways, were disposed of at the end of 2007. Typical range with 150 passengers for the A320-200 is about 2,900 nautical miles (5,400 km). It is powered by two CFMI CFM56-5 or IAE V2500 with thrust ratings between 25,500 to 27,000 pounds force (113 kN to 120 kN). The direct Boeing competitor is the 737-800. PAL - Philippine Airlines is currently the largest operator in-game with 3 Airbus A320-214 as of October 2009. Airbus A319 The A319 is a shortened, minimum change version of the A320. With virtually the same fuel capacity as the A320-200, and fewer passengers, the range with 124 passengers in a two-class configuration extends to 3,600 nautical miles (6,900 km), the highest in its class. A319s are among the most popular variants of the A320 family. In 2003 easyJet took delivery of A319s with smaller galleys (as EasyJet do not serve meals on some of their shorter flights) and 156 seats in a single class configuration. To satisfy evacuation regulations, additional over-wing exits were included. According to the New York Times23 the A319 was introduced at the request of Steven Udvar-Hazy. With jet fuel prices rising dramatically, Northwest Airlines is replacing the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 aircraft it has had in service for decades with the A319, because it is 27% more fuel efficient than the DC-9. The direct Boeing competitor is the 737-700. The large EasyJet order of 120 A319s plus 120 options was among the biggest aircraft sales deals in recent times, rivaled only by chief competitor Ryanair's order for Boeing 737 aircraft. It is powered by the same types of engine as the A320. JAA certification and service entry, with Swissair, took place in April 1996. As of October, 11,2009 20 A319s are in-service in the game. Airbus A321 The A321 is a minimum change stretch of the A320. The A321 program was launched in November 1989 and the first development aircraft first flew on 11 March 1993. European certification was awarded in December that year. Compared with the A320 the A321's major change is the stretched fuselage, with forward and rear fuselage plugs totalling 6.93m (22 ft 9in) (front plug immediately forward of wing 4.27m/14 ft, rear plug directly behind the wing 2.67m/8 ft 9in). Other changes include strengthening of the undercarriage to cope with the higher weights, more powerful engines, a simplified and refined fuel system and larger tires for better braking. A slightly modified wing with double slotted flaps and modifications to the flight controls allows the A321's handling characteristics to closely resemble the A320's. The A321 features an identical flightdeck to that on the A319 and A320, and shares the same type rating as the smaller two aircraft. The basic A321-100 features a reduction in range compared to the A320 as extra fuel tankage was not added to the initial design to compensate for the extra weight. To overcome this Airbus launched the longer range, heavier A321-200 development in 1995 which has a full-passenger transcontinental US range. This is achieved through higher thrust engines (V2533-A5 or CFM56-5B3), minor structural strengthening, and greater fuel capacity with the installation of one, or optionally two 2,900 litre (766US gal/638Imp gal) additional centre fuel tanks. The A321-200 first flew from Daimler Benz (later DaimlerChrysler, now Daimler AG) Aerospace's Hamburg facilities in December 1996. There are 41 Airbus A321s in-service as of October, 11,2009 with Skyladies as the major operator. Airbus A318 The A318, also known as the "Mini-Airbus" or "baby bus", is the smallest member of the A320 family, and the smallest Airbus of any kind. It originated from the AVIC and Airbus Industrie Asia cooperation program AE31X2627. During development, it was known as the "A319M3," thus indicating its history as a direct derivative of the A319. "M3" indicates "minus three fuselage frames." The aircraft is six metres shorter and 4 tonnes lighter than the A320. To compensate for the reduced moment arm it has a larger vertical stabilizer, making it 80 centimetres taller than the other A320 variants. Pilots who are trained on the other variants may fly the A318 with no further certification, since it features the same type rating as its sister aircraft. The A318 has a passenger capacity of 109 in a two-class configuration. It is intended to replace early Boeing 737 and Douglas DC-9 models, though it is also a rival to the 737-600. Boeing also offered their 717 aircraft as a competitor, although it was suitable primarily for regional routes and did not have the A318's range capabilities. The A318 is available with a variety of different maximum take-off weights (MTOW) ranging from a 59 tonne, 2,750 km (1,500 nautical mile) base model to a 68 tonne, 6,000 km (3,240 nautical mile) version. The lower MTOW enables it to operate regional routes economically whilst sacrificing range and the higher MTOW allows it to complement other members of the A320 family on marginal routes. The lighter weight of the A318 gives it an operating range 10% greater than the A320, allowing it to serve some routes that the A320 would be unable to: London-New York, Perth-Auckland and Singapore-Tokyo, for instance. Its main use for airlines, however, is on short, low-density hops between medium cities. During the design process, the A318 ran into several problems. The first one was the decline in demand for new aircraft following the September 11, 2001 attacks. Another one was the new Pratt & Whitney turbofan engines, which burned more fuel than expected: by the time CFMI had a more efficient engine ready for market, many A318 customers had already backed out, including Air China and British Airways. America West Airlines, which had selected the Pratt & Whitney engines, amended its A318 orders, opting instead for A319 or A320 aircraft. Trans World Airlines canceled a significant order for 50 A318 after being acquired by American Airlines, which does not operate any A320 family aircraft (although neither did TWA when the order was originally placed). While Airbus was hoping to market the A318 as a regional jet alternative, laws in both the U.S. and Europe have kept it in the same class as larger aircraft for calculating landing fees and the like, so regional operators have avoided it. It is powered by two CFM56-5 or Pratt & Whitney PW6000 engines with thrusts between 21,600 and 23,800 lbf (96 and 106 kN). Launch customers Frontier Airlines and Air France took deliveries in 2003, with Frontier receiving their models in July of that year. The price of an A318 ranges from $56 to $62 million 2, and operating costs are around $3,000 for a 500 nm (926 km) flight.needed While designing the A318, Airbus included a number of technology upgrades, many of which have been integrated into the rest of the A320 family. Some are also finding their way to the A380 jumbo aircraft. These upgrades include: * A new touchscreen LCD panel at the flight attendants' stations in the cabin, to simplify access to environmental and communications controls * New cabin lighting based on LED light sources, instead of halogen and fluorescent bulbs * Electrically powered backup braking systems, improving upon the older design using reserve hydraulic pressure * The use of laser beam welding during construction, used to fasten floor stringers to the lower fuselage shell. Laser welding eliminates the need for rivets to secure the joint, which saves weight, and is faster, saving on assembly time.